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greghagger

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Everything posted by greghagger

  1. greghagger
    Thanks for the great intel on frequency in relation to chords. I didn’t really know that side of things. I do love the effect that is created in sone of Avishai Cohen’s music where he plays upright with very low notes being played on the piano. You can hear that frequency difference between the two instruments and it causes a sort of natural chorus effect.
  2. greghagger
    Chords on the bass you say? Yes! Chords definitely have their place in certain bass lines and can be very effective to fatten up the sound. Although chords are utilised more frequently in solo bass tunes, bass players like Andy Fraser and Geddy Lee have been using them for years in fully-blown Rock songs. The humble power chord is king here and is easy to learn and throw in where appropriate. I've made a new video explaining some options for playing chords on the bass and in it I’ve also showcased a few chordal bass lines from songs by artists such as Stanley Clarke and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Find out more in my latest YouTube lesson.
  3. greghagger
    Yes, I would do it like that. I’d always set the preamp level first.
  4. greghagger
    Confused me for a while there!! Thought I was transcribing Sklar! 😂
  5. greghagger
    I'm always on the lookout for interesting bass lines and bass players that are new to me. I've done this since I first picked up the bass around 35 years ago and now I'm also doing this to pass these gems on to everyone else. Jackson Browne has always been a favourite songwriter of mine but up to now I've haven't transcribed any of the bass lines from his songs, in fact I wasn't even sure who played bass on his records. 'The Pretender' is one of Jackson Browne's most well-known hits and after spending a few confusing hours researching this song, it became clear that the wrong bass player was credited on it! It also turns out that one of my P-basses is a signature model from the actual bassist who did record this track. The bass line from The Pretender is a useful lesson in when to lay down a basic bass groove and when to fill the space with a busier and more melodic line. The two bass fills in this bass line are beautifully crafted and one of them just runs on when you think it's finished. Find out more in my latest YouTube lesson and pick up the free bass line transcription (notation & Tab) below the video. Enjoy!
  6. greghagger
    Glad you like it! In regards to the hum, I haven’t had any issue with that at home or in a few venues where I’ve used it. I’ve only got a few pedals in my chain though so maybe that’s an issue for you?
  7. greghagger
    I’ll see if I can persuade one of my guitarist mates to try this!
  8. greghagger
    Hey @Kateplaysbass I’m glad the video can be helpful for you. Let me know how you get on. Speed is definitely something that gradually happens with practice. Good luck with getting that Bob Seger tune in the set 😀
  9. greghagger
    This week a student asked me about the bass line from the Led Zeppelin classic, 'Good Times Bad Times' and it reminded me of just how good this bass line is. John Paul Jones's bass playing is on form in this song and there are some technically interesting lines to play. There are two sections and two licks in particular that seem to cause problems so I thought this would be a perfect choice of bass line to make a YouTube lesson on. John Paul Jones is such a creative bass player and so many famous bass players have stated that he's one of their influences so he's a great musician to study. This isn't an easy bass line but it's fun to pull apart and you might be surprised when you find that this bass line could easily be taken from a Motown tune! There is a full transcription of the bass line in standard notation and Tab available under the video.
  10. greghagger
    Yes, music existed before music theory and the theory has evolved as the music has evolved.
  11. greghagger
    It always amazes me that when you look at music theory and analyse music, there are always patterns there behind it all. Similar to the way that nature is made up of lots of pattens. The Circle Of Fifths diagram (or Cycle Of Fourths!) is a perfect example of the maths behind music. There are endless patterns in this circle. Of course it’s the human touch that truly makes a beautiful piece of music but music theory doesn’t take that magic away.
  12. greghagger
    Good point! That’s the thing, everyone picks up a certain amount of music theory unintentionally even without a teacher or without purposely studying music.
  13. greghagger
    definitely analysing which is a lot faster with an understanding of music theory. Also great for your playing 👍
  14. greghagger
    Nothing constructive in your comment and you sound very defensive. There is a wealth of information out there for you to take or leave. What you decide to do really doesn’t matter to me, it’s your choice. But perhaps if you did learn music theory, you’d be in a better position to discuss whether you need it or not. There’s nothing to gain by this line of communication so let’s leave it here.
  15. greghagger
    I agree with all of this. Knowledge of music theory certainly opens a lot of doors. I learnt bass initially with a cable wired into my record player! Records were just on the cusp of being replaced by cassette around then. No internet and we didn’t even have a TV 😂 I can only remember one bass magazine that had the odd bit of Tab in it.
  16. greghagger
    Very honest post Frank. I rebelled by picking up a bass as I was learning piano from my Dad at the age of 4 and then trumpet. Playing in a band was my two fingers up at the establishment. But once I realised around the age of 18 that I could actually play bass for a living if I soaked up everything about music, I embraced it all and went for it. Switching what I had already learnt about reading music and music theory from the other instruments was easy to transfer to bass. I thanked my Dad many times for teaching me music in those early years and enabling me to support myself and a family through playing bass. if I can learn music theory from 4 years of age, anyone can quite easily, especially with the amount of resources out there now like @itu pointed out.
  17. greghagger
    That was quite a long-winded way to say that you replied without watching the video. Of course we all have biases, mine is that I value music theory, yours is that you don’t. But surely presenting a question as the title of a video is acceptable even if I already know my answer? I thought that using ten famous bass players from a list that I didn’t pick and looking into their musical education was an objective way to sidestep my bias as much as possible. It surprised me that even more than I thought had studied music when I did this. Anyway, as I said before, I’m not looking to try to changed people’s mind but to present the facts and I reckon that over 40 years of studying many different styles of music and playing bass professionally for over 25 years puts me a good position to make this video.
  18. greghagger
    This particular line of discussion doesn’t seem to be going anywhere for either of us. Let’s move on…. What did you think of the video?
  19. greghagger
    Cool well if you’re going to put words in my mouth and are not up for a civil conversation then let’s move on 👍
  20. greghagger
    You’ve ignored my point that you have strong opinions about something that you by your own admission don’t know. Music theory is often misunderstood by those that don’t know it. Anyway I’m sure that if you viewed my video (with an open mind), you might be surprised at what you find and we might be having a different conversation. I’m not trying to change anyone’s views on this as I believe that we should all choose our own path with music but I thought it would be good to cut through some of the BS that I read online from people who misunderstand what music theory is.
  21. greghagger
    Ah, no I wouldn’t be that insulting! I was trying to distinguish between players who want to ‘have a tinkle’ or just want to have some fun and those that want to find out all they can and take it to the next level.
  22. greghagger
    It’s a lot easier than you think to learn theory as you go. You can still do this and remain an amateur 😀
  23. greghagger
    Music theory is a way to get a deeper understanding of how music works and is certainly excellent to know if you wish to communicate with others about music. You mention “a deep understanding of music theory” but I’m just talking about learning theory as you learn your instrument. I’m not talking about being a scholar here! You’ve picked just two examples of musicians taking about their own experiences with music. There is a vast wealth of music out there and why wouldn’t you want to really understand how it works? I’m not sure if you are just commenting without watching my video but you’ve definitely backed up what I said in my conclusion which is I’ve never met anyone who knows music theory to say not to learn it. The people who say not to learn theory don’t (by their own admission) know music theory. I find that interesting! Of course we all take our own path with music but to offer advice about something that we haven’t learnt about is surprising to me.
  24. greghagger
    Yes I’ve seen this too. Interesting perspective. Music theory is not actually connected to one style/era of music though. It allows you to explain what you are playing to others and very much applied to ‘modern’ music. Invaluable if you wish to become a musician rather just play songs on the bass.
  25. greghagger
    I've seen a lot of debates online about whether or not it is necessary to learn music theory and whether this will enhance or detract from your playing. It's always struck me that the arguments come from those who, by their own admission don't know music theory. So I thought it was time to talk through this debate and offer some of my experience to help you to get clarity on this subject. I've looked into the musical education of a select list of ten famous bass players to see what I can gleam from this information. I think that you might be surprised by what I found out! Check out the latest GBS YouTube video by clicking the image below.
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